PESHAWAR: Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman on Sunday said that the recently-passed laws were condemnable as it negated the spirit of 26th Amendment.

“If bills are being introduced that fall under the category of law and are passed after the 26th Amendment, it negates the spirit of the 26th Amendment,” he said.

He was talking to journalists after visiting Bilour House to offer fateha for the departed soul of former senator Ilyas Ahmad Bilour. He said that such an attitude by the governments always proved unsustainable and viable steps should be taken for satisfaction of people.

Mr Rehman said that every Pakistan had become a suspect-by-birth as the changes in the law permitted that anyone could be detained on suspicion for 90 days and beyond.

JUI-F chief says govt focusing on politics instead of welfare of people

“The provision related to Article 8 of the Constitution was removed from the [draft] of the 26th Amendment but now permission is given where anyone can be detained on suspicion. It is just like NAB laws where every Pakistani citizen was a convict-by-birth and the convicts had to prove themselves innocent,” he said.

The JUI-F chief said that politicians never did anything for people and their rights. He termed the new laws against the basic human rights.

“We complain when visas are refused to Pakistanis. If we see them as suspects in our own countries, other countries would definitely treat them as suspects,” he added.

To a question about the prevailing law and order situation in the country, he said that security situation in the province was worse.

He said that the residents of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had been going through miseries for last 15 years. He added that Balochistan also faced the same situation and government had lost its writ there.

Mr Rehman said that government was focusing on politics, confrontation with province and confrontation with the centre rather performing its due job and protecting life and property of people.

He said that differences always existed among political parties. He said that JUI-F too had reservations about 26th Amendment but it held discussion for over a month and deliberated over every single clause of the amendment.

“Wherever JUI-F could do, it convinced government on withdrawing certain sections and the 26th Constitution Amendment was later accepted,” he said.

Published in Dawn, November 18th, 2024